Risala Foundation is pleased to host Imam Khalid Latif and Linda Sarsour to mark Earth Day 2016.

✦✦✦ FRIDAY APRIL 22✦✦✦
① KHUTBAH by Khalid Latif - ISGH River Oaks Islamic Center at 1:30 PM

② GREEN DEEN: MUSLIMS IN THE AGE OF EXCESS- ISGH River Oaks Islamic Center at 7:45 PM

► Session 1: A Muslim’s Place as a Steward of the Earth
Speaker: Linda Sarsour
As trustees of Islam, we are each responsible for maintaining the integrity of the planet we live on, by preserving its wildlife, natural environment, flora and fauna. The unity of the Earth cannot be affected by discord, and is well maintained through balance and harmony. This lecture will discuss how Muslims can persevere as stewards of nature while living in an age of excess.

►Session 2: Nature’s Role in Islam
Speaker: Imam Khalid Latif
“And within the land are neighboring plots and gardens of grapevines and crops and palm trees, [growing] several from a root or otherwise, watered with one water; but We make some of them exceed others in [quality of] fruit. Indeed in that are signs for a people who reason.” The Holy Quran [13:4]. The Quran and Hadith have mentioned nature in numerous instances. This lecture will discuss several of these references and will explore what Allah intended nature’s role to be in our everyday lives.

► Joint Q&A Session (30 mins)

✦✦✦ SATURDAY, APRIL 23 ✦✦✦
③ ACTIVISM AS AN ACT OF FAITH - LECTURE & DINNER Masjid WDM at 5:30 PM

► Session 1: Speaking Truth to Empower
Speaker: Linda Sarsour
In today’s tumultuous climate, Muslims should be more than inclined to participate in social activism – to empower those less privileged, correct misguided beliefs and speak up for those who cannot. In this session, we will discuss the importance of social activism for the Muslim community and the need for participation in movements that enable change.

► Session 2: A Social Movement Theory Event
Speaker: Khalid Latif
While working on activism to repair the image of Islam and assist in other social equality movements, it is similarly important to broaden the terms of inclusion within Islam. To truly cultivate better understanding between Muslims and others individuals in America today, a serious dialogue must emerge on topics such as safe spaces for women in Islam and inclusion of all races.

► Joint Q&A Session (30 min)

Dinner on sale by Gabriel's Soulfood & Smoked Meats

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
IMAM KHALID LATIF is a University Chaplain for New York University, Executive Director of the Islamic Center at NYU, and a Chaplain for the NYPD. He is also the co-founder of Honest Chops, the first-ever all-natural/organic halal butcher in NYC, the Muslim Wedding Service, an agency specializing in providing charismatic and inspirational marriage officiants for wedding ceremonies, and a partner in the MKO Group, an investment group that owns and operates multiple Edible Arrangements franchises in Manhattan.

He was appointed the first Muslim chaplain at NYU in 2005. He was also appointed the first Muslim chaplain at Princeton University in 2006. Spending a year commuting between these two excellent institutions, he finally decided to commit full-time to New York University's Islamic Center where his position was officially institutionalized in the spring of 2007. Under his leadership, the Islamic Center at NYU became the first ever established Muslim student center at an institution of higher education in the United States.

LINDA SARSOUR is currently the National Advocacy Director for the National Network for Arab American Communities (NNAAC) and ACCESS and locally serving as the Director of the Arab American Association of New York, a social service agency serving the Arab community in NYC.

She has been at the forefront of the debate around the New York Police Department's unwarranted surveillance of the American Muslim community. She continues to work with city officials and allies to push legislations and policies that respect the dignity and civil rights of New York residents while maintaining safety and order. Linda was recently named American Muslim of the Year by the largest Muslim civil rights organization in the United States, honored by the White House in 2011 as a “Champion of Change”, and received the 2010 Brooklyn Do-Gooder Award from the Brooklyn Community Foundation. Linda is also a board member of the New York Immigration Coalition, a coalition of over 200 nonprofit agencies serving the diverse immigrant communities of New York State and the Network of Arab American Professionals-NY Chapter. She has been profiled by PBS, Yahoo News, NY1’s One on One With Budd Mishkin and theGuardian. She has been featured in local, national, and international media speaking on topics ranging from women’s issues, Islam, domestic policy and political discussions on the Middle East conflict. Linda’s strengths are in the areas of civil rights in the context of national security, community organizing, civic engagement and immigrants’ rights advocacy. - See more at: http://nyf.org/speakers/linda-sarsour/#sthash.14vbPJUM.dpuf External Event Url
Multiple venues in Houston
Houston, TX, USA